Rune Factory’s first entry arrived to a welcoming fanbase almost 20 years ago, and players have signed on for the adventures of a string of amnesiac protagonists, equal parts fighter and farmer, ever since. Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma delivers on the promise of the series with another hero mysteriously connected to the land who, despite not having any memory of their life prior, can forge their destiny anew in a charming town filled with a cast of vibrant characters. After the lacklustre reception to Rune Factory 5, developer Marvelous Inc. offers up a totally fresh take on the Rune Factory formula in here that could push the series to even greater heights going forward.
Guardians of Azuma takes place in a brand new location for the Rune Factory series: an Eastern country that draws a lot of aesthetic inspiration from traditional Japanese culture. After choosing between two characters to play as (we picked Kaguya), we enter what is admittedly a pretty long opening sequence of cinematics and tutorials.
Our favourite Switch 1 eShop games released in May.
The summer is here, the Switch 2 is almost here, and that means it’s eShop Selects time for May.
This is our very last Switch 1 edition of our monthly feature — but don’t worry, things aren’t changing with the release of a new console. You’ll still be getting your monthly dose of eShop hidden gems that we’ve reviewed, but Switch 2 eShop exclusives will be joining the party too.
Hello reader who is also a reader, and welcome back to Booked For The Week – our regular Sunday chat with a selection of cool industry folks about books! Did you know that adopting language altered the position of the human larynx, making us more susceptible to choking on food? I learned this because I’ve finished Blood Meridian, and was reading McCarthy’s musings on the evolution of language as a chaser. Proof, then, that the only truly fitting way to leave this world is to die choking on a book. Perhaps this week’s guest can recommend a good one?
Switch 1 will live on, of course (and we’re still excited to play Rhythm Heaven Groove and Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream next year), but all eyes are on Nintendo’s new console, with its brand new games and its updates to existing classics. Yes, yes, we’ve all played Breath of the Wild to death, but do you think that’s going to stop us gliding in for a cheeky 4K replay?
Everybody’s Golf: Hot Shots was announced for the Switch earlier this year but at the time few other details were shared.
In a small development (via Wario64 on social media), the game has now been rated by the ESRB. At the very least it’s a sign the game’s release schedule is still on track. It’s rated ‘E10+’ for ‘Everyone 10+’ and contains mild language and mild suggestive themes. Here’s the official rating summary:
Nintendo has uploaded the Switch 2 instruction manual and apart from all the warnings, there’s a small but notable detail about the system’s screen.
This new LCD panel has a pre-applied film layer which is “designed to prevent fragments scattering” in the event of damage. Nintendo advises users to “not peel it off”. Here’s the warning filed under the “careful usage” section of the manual:
The next Phasmophobia update, Chronicle, is due out next month with a newly revealed June 24th release date, and developer Kinetic Games have offered up some details on what it calls one of the game’s “biggest updates” so far. So, let’s have a look at what that entails! The key addition with this update is the arrival of sound evidence, which as you can probably guess is a new haunting paranormal proof type that you’ll acquire by using the newly added sound recorder.
Developer Rebellion Developments revealed a first look at Atomfall’s first DLC expansion yesterday. Titled Wicked Isle, it unsurprisingly brings you to an island called Midsummer Island that is, in fact, a bit wicked, but like, in the bad way, not in the something a teen in the 2000s would say about something they like kind of way. Specifically it’ll have a bit more of a folk horror vibe to it, which I’m certainly into conceptually. Lots of great folklore in the UK, as long as it’s not stepping over frequently trodden upon territory.
FromSoftware has acknowledged matchmaking issues on Elden Ring Nightreign during its first weekend, and offered suggestions to players affected.
Today, May 31, FromSoftware tweeted to address players who were struggling to find other players when launching an expedition in the multiplayer Elden Ring spin-off. If you do, try restarting the matchmaking process, FromSoftware suggested. That’s not a great help, admittedly, but at least we know the developer is aware of the problem. “Thank you for your patience and understanding,” it added.
FromSoftware followed that social post with another, this time acknowledging issues on PlayStation consoles specifically. Those on PS4 and PS5 who are having difficulty matchmaking should check their NAT type, FromSoftware said. “NAT type 3 may affect matchmaking on PSN,” it explained.
Check your NAT type with the following steps:
Home > Settings > Network > Connection Status > Check Connection Status
There is no specific advice for Xbox at this time.
“Nightreign has some peculiar aspects to its game design and is different from our recent titles in various ways,” Kitao said. “Nonetheless, many of you have bravely jumped into this world, and for that we’re immensely grateful.
“As with Demon’s Souls or Sekiro, it may be confounding at first, but just like those games, Nightreign offers its own challenges and experiences. Once you overcome the initial hurdle, it’ll surely provide a sense of accomplishment that’s also its very own.
“We hope you enjoy it.”
So, what might this tweet be about, specifically? Well, Nightreign is still on a ‘mixed’ user review rating on Steam, with much of the negative sentiment revolving around its brutal solo experience, its lack of duos co-op, lack of voice chat, and other archaic mechanics. That age-old multiplayer struggle to find enough friends to make up a coordinated three-player group is very much a part of the Elden Ring Nightreign experience, too. A patch to make solo play easier is due out next week.
As explained in IGN’s Elden Ring Nightreign review: “Let’s get the most important caveat out of the way first: if you are hoping to tackle Nightreign entirely solo, and are anything less than a hardcore Elden Ring player that actively seeks out ways to make that already difficult game even more challenging, Nightreign isn’t for you. Yes, there is technically a single-player option, but it is so poorly balanced that I would be shocked if it isn’t patched and adjusted within the first month of release. And this is coming from someone who lives and breathes these types of games.”
Wesley is Director, News at IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.
